For a very long time the creation account given in the Bible has been taken literally, although even in ancient times some early church fathers, such as Origen and Augustine, did not agree that Genesis 1 and 2 should be taken in a completely literal manner. The problem with their position is that, again, most did take it literally for many centuries. Certainly the writers of the Bible considered the whole Genesis account, including the creation of the heavens, the earth, and mankind, to be actual history (Psalm 29:10, 33:6-9, 104:5-9, 19; Isaiah 54:9; Matthew 19:3-6; Romans 5:12-19; 1 Corinthians 11:8-9; 1 Peter 3:20; 2 Peter 2:4-9, 3:3-7). That goes also for Genesis 3 – 11 (remember my last blog, “The Validity of Genesis 1 – 11”) as well as the rest of Genesis. Unfortunately there are segments of Christianity (and Judaism) that have had an allegorical rather than a literal view of the early chapters of Genesis, including the account of the creation, and in the past several centuries, between the rise of technology and textual criticism, more and more have questioned the view that this account is literal. We of It Ain’t Over Ministries hold to a belief that the telling of the way that God created everything is literal and that it should not be taken any other way.
In the Genesis account of creation the word for day in Hebrew is yowm (pronounced yohm) and it means a literal twenty-four hour period, especially with the inclusion of the phrase “the evening and the morning” (Jews consider a day to be from sunset to sunset, not midnight to midnight). There are those who defend the long time frames given by both evolutionists and nontraditional Christian creationists by saying that we do not know how much time elapsed between each day in Genesis 1, but under closer examination that argument does not hold water. There is absolutely nothing in the text to suggest that God paused between creation days. The one day we know that He did pause on was the seventh day, the Sabbath (Genesis 2:1-3). Throughout the rest of the Bible the term “day” holds the same meaning, according to the law of first mention. Note: In light of this, I am not going to discuss at this time what day Jesus Christ was likely crucified on. That, I will save till Easter (Passover). The law of first mention is not an absolutely set-in-stone principle of Biblical interpretation, as the context of certain Scriptures can affect the meaning of a word, phrase, or concept. Often, though, a word, phrase, or concept holds the same meaning throughout the Bible as it does when it is first mentioned, such as divine omnipotence, sin, family, judgment, covenant, death, et cetera.
Since God is all-powerful, why would He need millions or billions of years to create everything? He did not. There is a situation which challenges secularists and creationists alike: The distances of many stars and all the galaxies. If these celestial bodies are many thousands, or millions or billions, of light-years away, then how can we see them if the universe is young? Creation scientists have had a variety of theories to explain this. This consumes too much time for a blog, so I refer you to the following link so you can read more on the topic: HERE
I also remind you here that the Bible is the inspired Word of God from cover to cover and that He does not lie (2 Peter 1:19-21; Numbers 23:19). Even if we cannot completely understand some of the things the Bible tells us, such as the nature of the Godhead, we are to trust it because God is the one who inspired people to write it.
Another thing in moving forward from the creation account is the great care that the Jews took in putting together their genealogies. Given the length of time that people lived before the Flood, following the Genesis 5 genealogy and allowing for the overlap of different individuals’ lives on earth, a total of 1,656 years elapsed between the creation of the earth and the Flood. Bible experts have dated the Exodus at 1446 BC, the reign of King David from 1010 to 970 BC, and so on, and there are various other historical information elements available to time out the rest of the Bible’s events. In sum, the earth’s age and therefore the universe’s age do not appear to be beyond about six thousand years or so. There are also other, scientific-type pieces of evidence to build this case.
One of those pertains to the earth’s magnetic field. It has been measured since the middle 1840’s and has exhibited a regular rate of decline in strength. Extrapolating from this, an upper age of 20,000 years is arrived at. Had the magnetic field existed before then, given its rate of decline, the earth would have been entirely too hot to be covered by water like it was at the start of creation (Genesis 1:2). Another issue is what is called the faint young sun paradox. If the sun evolved like secular scientists claim it did, our home star would have been smaller, dimmer, and cooler in earlier ages, with the earth likewise colder in the distant past—too cold to support life at first, in fact. There is no evidence of this. Secularists have tried to come up with theories to get around this problem, but it takes more faith to believe their convoluted machinations than it does to believe that the sun was bright enough and warm enough for life on earth to exist from the moment that God created it. There are other scientific evidences discovered by creation scientists which, unsurprisingly, support a literal interpretation of the Biblical creation account and a young earth. Such resources as Answers in Genesis, “The Evolution Cruncher”, and various materials from The Institute for Creation Research (ICR), are available online to click onto or to order. ICR is now located in Dallas, Texas. Acts and Facts, a magazine published by ICR, is another good resource to read or subscribe to. The Biblically themed park, Ark Encounter, in Williamstown, Kentucky, is very interesting and informative and you can find videos from them on YouTube. Never mind the negative press some give it. This is to be expected from those who hate God’s Word and God’s people.
Practically speaking, now that the basis for our beliefs has been established, what happens if you encounter a believer who does not believe the Genesis account is literal or that the earth and the universe are young? First, be built up in your knowledge of the Bible. How can you defend what you are not familiar with? Second, you do not have to be some science geek, but at least a minimal working knowledge of creation science and the findings of such scientists is helpful. For the sake of space and simplicity I presented a representative list of resources in this blog. There should be other resources out there also. In this age we are highly advanced technologically, information is widely available, and sadly, although what the Bible says should be good enough on its own, frequently it is not as far as skeptics are concerned. Third, give grace to those believers who do not agree with you. Faith in the Word and what it teaches is very important. At the same time, this is not a salvation issue. Stand firm on the premises of a young earth and the literalness of the Genesis creation account, but do not be combative or overbearing about it. Some people are not going to agree while others will come to see this truth over time. For example, it took me several years to arrive at this point in what I believe about creation and the age of the earth we live on.
Similar advice is applicable to take when encountering a nonbeliever who is skeptical. Remember, lost people are just that—lost. They do not have the same amount of spiritual insight that we do. The same attitude towards them concerning creation is applicable as in that when we share the Gospel:
1 Peter 3:15: But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;…
If you see the person disagreeing with you is beginning to ridicule you or become hostile, drop the discussion and get out of there. Do not cast your pearls before swine (Matthew 7:6). And no matter how convincing “the science” seems to be, never, ever doubt the Word of God! Remember, even if there are things in it that you cannot understand, you can trust it. Look at what the psalmist said here:
Psalm 119:89-90, 103-104: Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven. Your faithfulness endures to all generations; You established the earth, and it abides…How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through Your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.
The fourteenth chapter of Romans is a good discussion on issues that are not always so clear to believers. We recommend you read the whole chapter, but here is how it begins so you can have an idea:
Romans 14:1: Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things.
In conclusion I reiterate the point that those of It Ain’t Over Ministries are young-earth, young-universe creationists who take the creation account in Genesis literally. We will not attempt to out-argue or outmaneuver those who do not agree with us, but we will pray for them that the Lord may give them understanding or, if the person in question is lost, we will pray for their salvation. As for us, we know what the Lord has showed us on this issue and our minds are therefore settled.
